


A Proper Hairstyle

by jjtaylor



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-21
Updated: 2017-08-21
Packaged: 2018-12-18 00:08:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 410
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11862519
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jjtaylor/pseuds/jjtaylor
Summary: Set after Order of the Phoenix. Posting from the dusty LJ archives: written 11/18/2004





	A Proper Hairstyle

Minerva sits at her vanity and begins to comb out the tangles of her wet hair. She's worn her hair this way since she started going gray; she can hardly remember deciding on a prim bun as the proper hairstyle for a woman of her age, and she wonders quite how much concentration she would need to force her hands to create the long braid she wore when she was a girl. 

After the stunning spells that sent her to St. Mungo's – she grimaces at the thought of that foul woman - she'd been forced to wear her hair down for a week. She couldn't reach her arms above her shoulders, and every girl knew, as her mother taught her, that magic was not nearly precise enough for hairstyles. She'd felt more vulnerable than her injury warranted with her hair cascading down her shoulders, as though every moment held her just woken from sleep, unprepared. Even now, months later, she can feel a twinge in her chest if she moves the wrong way. 

"Morning," Albus says from behind her. She startles at his voice and drops the comb, though she should not be surprised to see him. This, too, has become habit; Albus wandering into her quarters as though they were his. To be fair, she can't remember the last time she knocked when entering his rooms.

Albus rests his hands on her shoulders and leans over to kiss her cheek. He picks up the comb from the floor where it fell and takes over brushing her hair. She closes her eyes and enjoys the pampering and the quiet of this morning while she can. She's helping Irma rearrange some of the shelves in the library after breakfast. And in the afternoon, she's meeting Remus for tea, ostensibly to discuss the translations he's working of an ancient transfiguration text, though they both know it's an excuse to check up on him. 

Albus wraps her hair into a bun and secures it with a clip. "You look most presentable, Professor McGonagall."

Minerva takes a moment to admire herself in the mirror for Albus' benefit. "Why, thank you, Headmaster," Minerva says, and stands. She sees reflected in Albus' eyes the same weariness in her own. They've weathered more uncertain times together than she cares to consider , and she wonders if she should find a strange sort of comfort in that. 

"Another day, Minerva," he says, taking her hand.

"Yes," she answers. "Another day."


End file.
